The Story
by Alama
Summary: "All of these lines across my face tell you the story of who I am. So many stories of where I've been and how I got to where I am, but these stories don't mean anything when you've got no one to tell them to. It's true. I was made for you." -Brandi Carlile (The Story) A series of Linzin prompts. Romance and hilarity ensues! ;)
1. Be the Leaf

**Writer's block is **_**evil!**_

**I'm fighting- or at least attempting to fight writer's block with prompts. **

Prompt: Imagine Person A of your OTP getting a higher score on "Flappy Bird" than Person B. How does Person B react?

**WARNING: Slight language ahead for anyone it might bother!**

**AU: Modern day Linzin. For the sake of this universe, I have changed the name of "Flappy Bird" to "Leaf in the Wind." I'm guessing you guys can figure out the changes ;) Enjoy!**

"Damn it!"

"Fuck!"

"How the flameo is someone supposed to get past this thing? This is impossible."

Cerulean eyes narrowed in suspicion, but otherwise, Tenzin didn't make a move. He studied the woman at his side as she glowered defiantly at the phone she held in one hand. Her mouth was set in a firm line and with her free hand she repeatedly tapped the screen with her index finger. After a few taps on the screen another curse escaped from Lin's gritted teeth, a shuttering breath passed through pursed lips, and soon enough she was engaged with said item once again.

The airbender raised an inquisitive brow. "What are you doing, Lin?"

Lin didn't speak for a moment, her emerald eyed gaze locked on the screen in front of her face. The room was dark, but the light from the phone highlighted the dark haired woman's features. Her lips were curled into a snarl. She groaned and tossed said item onto the bed as she seethed, "Leaf in the Wind."

"Which is…?"

"It's an app. A game," she simply stated before taking the phone back into her hands. The woman exhibited her point by demonstrating, narrating as she opened the application. Her boyfriend leaned in. "You tap the screen and the leaf floats through the air. Just don't hit the obstacles or you- Damn it! The highest score I have managed is ten."

"That is what you're all worked up about? That's nothing but a mockery of technology. A complete waste of time," Tenzin concluded with a dismissive wave of his hand.

Beifong took a moment to consider wording, she tucked a loose strand of ebony hair behind her ear. With a smirk plastered on her face, emerald eyes shining she leaned into her boyfriend's shoulder. "You're right, airhead," she sighed. "Besides, it's not like you could beat my score, anyway."

That comment seemed to catch the monk's attention, for he turned to Lin with an unreadable expression that adorned his face. With a glance toward the phone that Lin would only describe as curiosity, he paused, hesitant.

She pressed forward, a hint of jocularity in her own voice. She smirked- she was going to enjoy this. "What is it?"

Lin suppressed a laugh that threatened to escape and managed to simply scoff as Tenzin inquired with a hint of curiosity laced over his usually composed demeanor, "May-may I try it?"

"Knock yourself out, Airhead."

Tenzin took the phone into his hands and within moments appeared to be in a complete and utter trance. His eyes were deadlocked on the multicolored display, his mouth agape and fingers moving rapidly across the screen. Minutes passed and Lin found that the airbending master had yet to stumble. She leaned over his shoulder, her own mouth agape and she gasped.

"Fifty-five?!" she rasped, "how?"

With a smile on his face, Tenzin simply handed the phone back to her, and said, "Be the leaf." When Lin did nothing but stare at the man as if he had consumed a bottle of cactus juice he clarified with, "patience, Lin. The goal is to weave your way through the obstacles without touching them. Like airbending, you must be able to switch direction at a moment's notice. It's simple, really."

With narrowed emerald eyes, now gleaming with green envy- that almost hurt to admit- Lin scowled at the man as she tossed the phone carelessly to the side. "I hate you."

Tenzin smiled and pulled Lin closer with a tattooed arm wrapped around her waist. For a mere moment she resisted the embrace, but soon relaxed into his touch. He placed a chaste kiss on her cheek before capturing her lips in a soft kiss.

"I love you."

~*~  
**If anyone reading this has played "Flappy Bird" then you understand Lin's pain! That game is so frustrating, but it's freaking addicting! Lin's commentary at the beginning of this, save from saying "flameo" (I think I might have actually said "monkey feathers", though…) that was my basically my exact wording while playing the game on a friend's iPad. (She took it away from me because I threatened to throw it against the wall…) **

**Anyway…Enjoy it? **

**Extremely short, but this was really fun. I hope you guys liked it. Tell me what you think. I'm open to suggestions for more prompts...**


	2. Torrent

Prompt: "I love the rain, don't you?"

**Hey, hey! Welcome back! **

"**He remembered the first time he took her flying: It started raining and he wanted to land but her exact rebuttal was: 'You're an airbender, you'll dry'." **

**~ From my Linzin sentence drabbles (Like Old Times) - ****Rain****…**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Despite the ominous aura, dark clouded skies held a promise for a torrential downpour, Tenzin smiled as he daintily tossed the rest of the supplies effortlessly in to Oogi's saddle. The twelve year old airbender, usually so composed, wanted to do nothing more than leap into the air, whoop and holler, to express his ever-growing enthusiasm in anticipation for the event to come. With each passing second, the boy found it more and more difficult to maintain his stoic visage.

Today was the day. Today was the day he was finally going to take Oogi out on his first solo flight!

Better yet: Lin was accompanying him.

"What's the hold up, Airhead? Let's get this bison into the air. Chop. Chop."

His back was turned, but he could almost picture eleven year old Lin Beifong standing there, emerald eyes narrowed, arms folded across her chest, infamous smirk adoring her face.

"Lin," he nodded in a superfluous formal greeting, "lovely as always."

"Cut the garbage, Tenzin." Any normal passerby wouldn't have at all taken notice at the way Lin's voice wavered, only in the slightest, as she waved her hand dismissively at the airbender's hello. He did. There was a hint of color in her usual ivory cheeks, and only for a moment did she avoid making eye contact with the boy, but she did. With erect posture, she pressed, "Are we going to go flying, or are we going to exchange pleasantries like a bunch of sophisticates?"

"Of course," Tenzin suppressed a knowing smirk, simply smiling down at the scowling earthbender as he took his place atop Oogi's head, reins in hand. He looked sidelong as Lin expertly scaled the bison's side, comfortably positioning herself at the head of the saddle. Satisfied that she was secure, he averted his gaze to the clouds. "We should be cautious. It's appears it is going to rain."

Dramatically rolling her eyes and snapping her fingers together, Lin deadpanned, "All the more reason for us to get a move on. _Let's go._"

"Patience, Lin. You know, the monks used to say-"

A deep throated, almost animalistic like growl echoed in the back of Lin's throat as she pointedly glared in Tenzin's direction.

"-point taken," a wide eyed airbender knowingly nodded. "Let's go. Oogi," Tenzin couldn't suppress the smirk that broke his generally cool, calm, and collected demeanor. The next words floated easily off his tongue, "Yip, yip."

He was doing it.

They were doing it.

On his own, for the first time, Tenzin was flying Oogi, his best friend by his side.

He held a vice like grip on the reins, knuckles turned white, his heart pounded feverishly against his rib cage- it certainly couldn't be healthy for a person to experience this much of an adrenaline rush, in one moment. He was soaring in every sense of the word. As the sky bison ascended into the air at a steady pace, he laughed- a hardy loud laugh that wisped with the gentle breeze, melting into the clouds.

He felt free.

He felt alive.

His told loosened on the leather, content that Oogi could fly without hesitation at that point, and cast a sidelong glance back toward the earthbending girl. His heart skipped a beat, that soaring sensation rocketing to heights he didn't realize possible. Lin Beifong wore a visage as strong and unyielding as the earth she bent, but the smile that adorned her face as she took in her aerial surroundings…she looked beautiful. Emerald jade eyes crinkled as the laugh that emanated from her upturned lips stretched, accenting her high cheekbones. Those ivory cheeks were flushed- a crimson that put the embroidery of the finest fire nation clothing to shame.

"This is incredible!" she exclaimed, with flailing hand gestures to emphasize her point, "look at this! Come here, Airhead."

Comfortable to take his place by her side, he sat crossed legged on the edge of the saddle, leaning cautiously to take in the view, following the path of Lin's downcast index finger. "That is," he whispered a wisp of breath through pursed lips, "incredible."

The Island below, a generally formidable force all its own, looked so miniscule from their vantage point. While it was neither Tenzin's nor Lin's first time seeing the Island from this angle, the simple fact that it was _Tenzin _that held the reins in his hands, that _he _was the one guiding the bison through the skies. That simple fact made the two of them sport unmistakable smiles.

He did it. They did it. He- _they_ were flying solo.

"I-"Tenzin stopped. A droplet of water, striking against his cleanly shaven head, made the pre-pubescent boy stare curiously at the clouds above.

Rain poured from the sky in sheets, almost in an instant.

"Lin," Tenzin shouted over the echoing roar of the precipitation, "we should land. We're getting soaked!"

She didn't move. Not an eye-twitch. Her miraculous smile never once left her face. She simply gripped the edge of the saddle, threw back her head and laughed. The rain covered her face, streams of water trailing down her ivory cheeks, tracing her jawline. Tongue outstretched, the girl gleefully caught the droplets in her mouth before turning back to her friend with a raised brow and that signature grin on her face.

"This is great!" In a rather grotesque display of "Beifong" affection, her fist collided rather roughly with the boy's forearm. He scowled, but appreciated the gesture, nonetheless. "I love the rain, don't you?"

Tenzin frowned. "Well, not really, Lin. I think we should land. We're getting extremely soaked."

"Seriously?" was her response, accompanied by an incredulous look and a quirked brow. "You're worried about getting wet? You're an airbender, you'll dry."

He watched with amusement as the young earthbender continued to relish in the torrential downpour that made her ebony hair plaster to her face. In a vain attempt to move her hair out of her eyes, she tucked a strand behind her ear. She laughed. She smiled.

Lin Beifong _generally_ wore a visage as strong an as unyielding as the earth she bent. Never had Tenzin seen an earthbender so relaxed out of their element- away from the ground and into the air.

Lin looked content.

She looked free.

She looked alive.

Who was he to deny her that pleasure?

"Fair enough," Tenzin concluded, "five more minutes."

"Awesome!" A chaste kiss was placed on Tenzin's cheek. If felt like a whisk of air. "You're the best!"

Any passerby wouldn't have noticed the flustered way Tenzin tugged at the collar of his robe. Or that there was a slight waver in his voice as he managed to mumble a dismissive acceptance. She did. There was a hint of color on his generally rather pale face. She smiled knowingly as he straightened his robes and took his place back atop Oogi's head once more, taking the reins in his hands.

* * *

**Whatcha think? **


	3. Cooking with Tenzin

"**I don't have time to cook, Tenzin," she narrowed her emerald glare on the man that held his hands up, palms forward, "you want dinner? We go out. End of discussion." – ("Like Old Times"- ****Dinner)**

Prompt: Imagine your OTP is cooking with each other and A is being very romantic and silly, such as feeding B food, teasing them on their cooking skills, and pressing up behind them to guide their hands as they work.

**I'm back!**

**For those of you that may be unaware I'm in the process of extending "Permanent Marker" into a multi-chapter piece. I'm getting there. Very slowly, but I'm almost done with the second half of chapter two (I think I just jinxed it.)That being said I make no such promises that it will be updated anytime soon, though I promise to update as soon as it's finished. To be quite honest I'm about to bang my head against the wall. So, to avoid a potential concussion: I'm back with another prompt to relieve some tension.**

**Continue on. Enjoy! **

People would say that after a certain amount of time that you know when your significant other is in the room merely by some sort of internal signal. A slight pull indicating that they're in the room or sudden warmth that would overtake your body that only activates in their presence.

The curtains moved. There was a slight shift in the air. Quite literally as a gust of wind ruffled the pages of the book Lin held in her hands. Tenzin came all but floating, rather angrily stomping, into the den one afternoon, a livid scowl on his face. His usual composure and grace was forgotten as he kept his arms defiantly crossed over his chest and he sat down on the opposite end of the couch.

With a signature smirk that only the ladies of the Beifong family seemed capable of producing, Lin closed her book and arched a brow at her boyfriend's scowling form. "Have a good day?"

A groan was the only response she received.

"All right, Airhead, what's got your robes in a knot?" Book forgotten, she turned so she was facing him and leaned back into the arm of the couch, comfortably. "What'd the fuddy-duddy councilmen imbeciles say this time?"

With his thumb and forefinger rubbing gingerly on the bridge of his nose, he spoke carefully, with an exasperated sigh, "Do you remember the rising concerns about the Red Monsoon Triad?"

"Of course," Lin nodded her head, "locked their 'mastermind' behind bars last week." And she did a damn fine job of doing so if she said so herself. "What about it?"

Oceanic blue eyes looked as if they were experiencing their own monsoon as he met Lin's skeptical gaze. "Fighting among the water-tribe representatives of the council," he sighed. "Since the Red Monsoons were made up of solely waterbenders, the council is having issues coming to a conclusion of their sentencing. Certain customs raise alarm when it comes to honoring water tribe traditions. Meaning the northern and southern representatives are at a _stalemate_ when it comes to conclusions and resolutions."

"Screw them." Lin shrugged her shoulders when Tenzin gave her a wary looked completed with a furrowed brow. Content to continue on with her reading she thumbed through the faded pages as she advised, "Ship the morons off and be done with it. Not in my city, not my problem. If the Republic City force isn't equipped to handle the criminals that were born and raised, the last time I checked, in _Republic City, _I'm not even sure the majority of them have set foot on neither the North nor the South Pole, there's nothing the rest of us can do. Let their respective tribes deal with them, if that's what they want."

"Considerate as always, Lin," the airbending master noted, though the overall tone was full of sarcasm that so many people took on when being around the earthbending woman for a considerable amount of time, there was a smile on his face.

Lin merely smirked in return and turned a page in her book.

There was a low grumbling noise that unsettled the comfortable silence between the two. The police woman tore her gaze away from the pages to find her boyfriend with a slight hint of color to his cheeks- and not that she would ever outwardly say this- and a rather cute guilt ridden look in those ridiculously blue eyes of his. She quirked a brow at him and managed to hold her laughter.

"My apologies," he was quick to supply, "I came straight home after the council meeting."

"Calm down there, Tiny Twinkle-toes." Lin marked her page quickly before tossing the book to the side. "Come on. Kwong's Cuisine sound good?"

"Actually, Lin, I was thinking we could eat something here, if you wouldn't mind."

Certainly someone as knowledgeable as Master Tenzin wasn't suggesting that Lin Beifong _cook._ The woman wanted to laugh. Instead she stood on her feet, looking man up and down as if he were a four-hundred foot tall purple platypus-bear with pink horns and silver wings.

He fidgeted under her scrutiny.

As an act of some sort of benefit of the doubt, she cautioned, "Fine. What are you cooking?"

He was silent.

"I don't have time to cook, Tenzin," she narrowed her emerald glare on the man that held his hands up, palms forward, "you want dinner? We go out. End of discussion."

...

"Dice the carrots and add them to the mixture."

"What the heck does that even mean? Do you use nonsense words like this when you're teaching those wannabes? You're a horrible teacher. I have no idea in Kyoshi's name what I'm even doing. I still can't believe you got me to do this."

Lin felt his arms wrap around her waist and the exasperated sigh that he let out through pursed lips tickled her neck. She sucked in an unsteady breath as he took her hands in his and guided the knife she held through the infernal orange vegetable until it was in a bunch of incredibly small pieces.

Before releasing his hold, the airbending master placed a kiss on Lin's jaw, just below her ear. His hot breath was but a whisper, "that, my dear Lin, is how you dice a vegetable. Think you can manage the rest?"

He was mocking her. Defiantly popping a chunk of carrot into her mouth with a devious smirk, she silently cut away at the remaining vegetables.

"There," Lin leaned back against the counter top, "now what?"

"Toss the vegetables into the mixture, add the spices, and then stir until mixed well."

Lin's only response was a scoff and a quirked brow.

"This is all new to you, isn't it, Lin?"

"I told you, Airhead, I don't cook."

She didn't the like satisfactory smile that adorned his generally placid face as he said, "Watch carefully."

**...and now I'm hungry...**

**Thoughts? Anyone have an idea for a prompt? I'd love to hear it! **

**Thank you all for taking the time to read/review/ etc. It's greatly appreciated! **


	4. White Jade

Prompt: Lin Beifong: delectable tea or deadly poison?

...

A musky scent wafted in the breeze, the aroma overcoming the majority of Tenzin's senses. While many may detest that particular scent, the young airbender rather enjoyed the smell. At only ten years of age, Tenzin took his duties very seriously… too seriously as far as some were concerned. One, and the most important, as far as Tenzin was concerned, was his responsibilities as an airbender- one of the only two airbenders known to existence, he might add. Acting on those responsibilities was exactly what the boy was doing when Lin tapped on his shoulder one afternoon.

"What'cha doin', Tiny Twinkle-Toes?" she whispered in his ear. Lin peered over his shoulder and stared at the leather-bound book he held in his hands. The pages were worn and the lettering had faded to the point where if she squinted _really _hard she might've been able see bits and pieces. "You're reading?" she lifted a quizzical brow, "while you're outside?"

Tenzin shrugged his shoulders as if the act were simple to him. He enjoyed reading outside, and never quite understood why others didn't. The scenery on Airtemple Island was serene and quiet. More often than not, the boy would find a comfortable spot underneath the shade of a tree, or curl up on a bench, and read to his heart's content. Besides, his siblings were inside. Anybody that knew Kya and Bumi knew that the words 'quiet' and 'serene' were a like foreign language. When Tenzin was reading, those were the few moments when he could be alone in his own thoughts.

He looked back up at Lin and patted the spot next to him. Reluctantly, she sat down next to the boy and looked at the pages with narrowed eyes. Tenzin was happy, however, to share those thoughts with friends, if given the chance. With his index finger, he tapped the page where an elaborate sketch of some sort of flower was drawn on the edge.

"This is the White Jade flower: a poisonous plant that grows in the eastern Earth Kindgom." He paused for a moment, scratching the back of his neck. "Either that or the White Dragon flower, that makes tea…I get those two confused..."

"Interesting," the young earthbender commented. Although if her tone was any indication of her true feelings, Tenzin didn't think she found the tidbit amusing at all. "Remind me not to drink any tea around you," she added with a soft punch to Tenzin's arm and a devious smirk.

Tenzin rubbed the sore spot on his shoulder, making a mental note that that was sure to bruise, and threw a scowl in the girl's direction, while rolling his eyes. "Well, here." He thrust the book into her arms. Her emerald eyes widened at the force the book was hurled at her. He mentally smirked at his ability to catch Lin off guard. "You figure it out. It's harder than it looks."

Without giving the text a second glance she carelessly tossed to book aside. It landed rather harshly at the airbender's feet, much to his dismay. Lin retorted, "Look airhead. I know better than anybody what it's like to want to live up to the expectations of your people. Toph's my mom. But you do remember that you're a kid, right?"

"Of course I know that!" His parents and siblings reminded him enough, anyway. "It's just, this is important."

"Important?" Lin parroted. "Explain."

"The monks in the other Airtemples used to make herbal remedies for illnesses. I'm studying the herbs."

His response only caused Lin to roll her eyes so dramatically the airbender was surprised they weren't lodged in her skull. As he was about to comeback with a clever quip, the words died at the tip of his tongue as another voice rose above his own.

Bumi, Tenzin's older brother, and his sister, Kya, stood a few feet away as Bumi called out, waving his arms, "Hey Tenzin! Lin! We're playing 'Redemption'. You guys in?"

"We're in!" Lin called out without hesitation.

"But-"a protest had barely passed his lips as Lin held up a hand to silence whatever rebuttal he may have had.

"No buts." She grasped Tenzin's wrist and pulled him to his feet. "Come on, you can save the airbenders later. Don't be such a stick in the mud. Let's go have some fun." When his feet remained planted firmly on the ground, Lin flashed him a sweet smile. Her eyes softened and her lower lip quivered ever-so-slightly. In a rather sweet voice, she added, "Please?"

Lin Beifong did not _beg_ for anything. The girl knew how to get what she wanted- even if that meant bashing a few people with rocks in the process. She did not beg. She certainly never begged… like _that_. There was something about that look that she gave him. Never had Tenzin seen the girl look so… _delicate_. Her emerald eyes sparkled in the afternoon sun as they deadlocked on his. Despite his best efforts, Tenzin could not look away. The pout she adorned made him feel uneasy. He didn't like it. Nervously he tugged at the collar of his robes. He suddenly felt unnaturally warm.

"Fine," he mumbled.

That odd look on Lin's face instantaneously evaporated and her usual demeanor returned. Another blow to Tenzin's shoulder confirmed that the Lin he knew was back. "Awesome! Let's go!"

What the flameo just happened?

In true Tenzin fashion, before joining his best friend and his siblings, he tossed a reluctant glance toward his book, still skewed haphazardly on the ground, pages turned upward. With a final glance at the pages, it was if it all came together. For the longest time, his gaze faltered between the text and the rest of the gang.

"Come on, Tiny Twinkle-toes! Let's go!"

Lin's impatience voice met his ears, but the twinkle in her eyes was evident even from such a distance. She was White Jade, innocently enticing him, drawing him closer to her, until he finds that her false façade leaves him burning, itching, and struggling to breathe. Yet, he still falls for her tricks all over again.

"Patience, Lin!"

…

***quietly sips tea* **

**Thanks for reading! **


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